Omani lender set for $104m IPO

Dubai, September 11, 2012

Al Izz Islamic Bank, the second sharia-compliant lender being formed in Oman, will launch an initial public share offer (IPO) for 40 per cent of the bank later this month, Oman's regulator said in a statement.

Al Izz is the second Islamic bank to seek a stock market listing in Oman since the Sultanate reversed its position last year as the only country in the Gulf region not to permit sharia-compliant banking.

The bank, which counts Abu Dhabi state-fund Aabar Investments as a founding shareholder, aims to raise RO40 million ($104 million) through the offer which will open on September 22 and run for one month, the Omani Capital Markets Authority said.

In June Bank Nizwa raised RO60 million in an IPO that was 11 times oversubscribed. The shares have risen 3 per cent since then.

Shares in Al Izz's offering will be priced at 0.1 rials each and are open to both local and foreign investors, although the latter can only be allocated up to 70 per cent of the offering.

The offer will be managed by Bank Muscat with the shares due to be allotted on a 60/40 split between retail and institutional investors, although that ratio could change according to demand.

A single institutional investor can subscribe to a maximum of 10 per cent of the overall offer, the statement added.-Reuters